


Milestones

by concavepatterns



Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: Anal Sex, Consent, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Oral Sex, oblivious idiots, totally platonic sex with your bff FOR RESEARCH PURPOSES
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-01-30
Packaged: 2021-03-14 11:01:08
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 14,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28794333
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/concavepatterns/pseuds/concavepatterns
Summary: “Do you ever wonder if we’re missing something that everyone else is seeing?”
Relationships: Rhett McLaughlin/Link Neal
Comments: 54
Kudos: 130





	1. Chapter 1

It’s busy for a Tuesday.

Granted, all their days are busy when you’re running a company that’s always got at least four or five different pans in the oven. Irons in the fire? However the saying goes.

So when Rhett starts talking out of the blue, interrupting the late afternoon quiet of their office with the kind of tone that tells Link he’s been marinating on this idea for a while now, Link sighs at his computer screen and mentally kisses the rest of his productivity goodbye.

“Do you ever wonder,” Rhett begins in that thoughtful, philosophical way of his that makes Link want to groan in dread of the TED Talk he’s about to endure.

“Sure, all the time,” he interrupts facetiously, spinning around in his chair to look at the back of Rhett’s curly-haired head; the broad slope of his shoulders beneath his maroon-coloured t-shirt. “What should I eat for dinner tonight? Does Jade really know I love her? What dumb hypothetical question will Rhett ask me next?”

“Ha ha,” Rhett says flatly, swiveling his own chair around to study Link in return. “Seriously man, I’ve been thinking about this a lot. Do you ever wonder if we’re missing something that everyone else is seeing?”

Link blinks at him, thrown by the question. “Uh, I’m gonna need more context.”

“Like with you and me,” Rhett explains. “You’ve seen the comments. There’re so many fans out there who think we’d be good together – who think we’re _already_ together – because of how unusual our friendship is.”

“Well, it _is_ the internet,” Link points out dryly. “Of course it’s full of conspiracy theorists.”

“That’s not-” Rhett cuts himself off with an abrupt frown, clearly debating exactly how to put words to whatever he’s trying to say.

It’s so rare to see Rhett struggle to articulate himself, Link can’t help but lean forward in his chair, interest level jumping from about twenty-five to ninety-five percent as he rests his elbows on his knees and waits for Rhett to gather his thoughts.

“Okay yeah, there’s always gonna be your typical conspiracy theorists,” Rhett concedes after a minute, “but what I’m saying is, what if they’re actually right about us? What if they’re onto something and we’ve just been blind to it this whole time? Of course we wouldn’t be able see it for ourselves - we’ve been treating each other this way since we were six years old - so it all feels normal to us, but maybe it’s not.”

Link’s stomach performs a complicated flip-flop as he latches onto one very specific detail of what Rhett’s saying. 

“When you say ‘good together’...” he starts slowly, half afraid to keep going down this line of questioning and entirely too uncomfortable to keep maintaining eye contact at this point. “You mean like, romantically? _Sexually_?” His voice falters a little on the last word and he risks a quick glance up at Rhett, trying to gauge his reaction.

Rhett just nods, seeming far more at ease with this topic of conversation, although his gaze does seem to keep darting from Link to the wall and back again, like eye contact might be too embarrassing for him to manage too. “Either. Both. I mean, we already call ourselves an old married couple. You’ve never wondered...?”

Link chokes out a surprised, strained noise that’s meant to be a scoff but probably comes across sounding more like a deflating tire. “You’re the one who’s into the multi-verse and fanfiction, not me.”

“I’m not into fanfiction,” Rhett denies, which, after watching him pitch a certain episode idea in no less than three different meetings, is laughably untrue in Link’s humble opinion. “C’mon man, you can’t tell me you’re not at least a little curious about whether we’d be compatible that way. Especially when everyone already seems to think the evidence points to yes.”

Link frowns, leaning back in his chair and fiddling with the strap on his watch in an attempt to ignore the way his face has started to flare with heat. Honestly, it’s a miracle his heart-rate alarm hasn’t started chirping at him already. “So what exactly are you saying?”

Rhett pulls in a long breath, and whether it’s for dramatic effect or he’s just gathering courage, Link can’t be sure, but when he does speak, his voice is determined and unwavering. “I think we should have sex with each other.”

* * *

It’s ridiculous, Link thinks as he drives home from work that evening. Completely insane. There’s no way he’s gonna sleep with his best friend just to test some random internet theory.

Not a freaking chance, he repeats to himself while tidying the kitchen after dinner, scrubbing down the countertop with way more force than necessary. It’s absurd that he’s even given the idea any space in his brain.

Besides, he’s not even attracted to Rhett in that way, he rationalizes as he lathers himself up in the shower later that night, one soapy hand drifting absently down his stomach as he looks out his shower window, frowning blankly into the distance.

“It’s not gonna happen,” he tells Christy once they’re settled in bed and he’s spilled the entire story to her, too restless to sleep and unwilling to lie when she questioned why he’d been so distracted all evening.

Of all the ways he expects Christy to react, laughing is not one of them.

“I’ve probably been waiting about fifteen years to have this conversation,” she tells him, looking vaguely amused and completely at ease in a way that confuses the heck out of Link. “You’re more stubborn than I give you credit for sometimes.”

“Uh, thank you?” He’s not entirely sure whether that’s a compliment or not.

“I was already planning to go to Target tomorrow,” Christy adds, “so let me know if I should pick up any supplies for you two.”

_Supplies_? Link isn’t gonna touch that statement with a ten foot pole.

“There’s nothing to pick up because I’m not doin’ it,” he reiterates firmly.

“Jessie probably has some ideas too,” Christy keeps musing out loud, and Link briefly wonders if he’s turned into one of the adults in a Peanuts cartoon or something; voice replaced by an inaudible drone of _waah waah waah_. “I’ll give her a call in the morning.”

“Baby,” he tries again fruitlessly, “I’m gonna tell him no.”

“Mm hmm,” she replies, and Link resolutely ignores the skeptical raise of her eyebrows as he rolls onto his stomach and buries his face in his pillow. He’s overtired; he’s probably just imagining it anyway.

* * *

Link barely has time to drop his backpack on the floor beside his desk the next morning when Rhett glances up from where he’s seated on their office couch and says, “Jessie ordered us a bed for the creative house.”

“Good morning to you too,” Link huffs, starting to peel his jacket off and struggling when his shirt gets caught on some sort of snag inside one of the sleeves.

Abandoning the phone he’d been scrolling through, Rhett gets up, ambles over and calmly grabs a hold of Link’s flailing arm, one hand gently cupping Link’s elbow while the other helps to work Link’s trapped forearm through its sleeve.

His hands feel big and warm even through the two layers of Link’s jacket and button-down shirt, and Link swallows reflexively at the touch, murmuring a small, too-soft ‘thanks’ before Rhett backs off and returns to the couch. God, Rhett’s idiotic idea must really be messing with his brain if he’s suddenly this flustered from Rhett just standing next to him.

Shaking off any lingering weirdness, Link takes his time draping his jacket over the back of his office chair, using fingers that’re only a little shakier than normal to make sure the collar lays nice and flat.

“So if she bought a bed, I’m assuming you told her about it then? What you wanna do?” he clarifies, forgoing the seat at his desk in favour of joining Rhett over on the couch.

“I did.” Rhett looks at him steadily, face unreadable. “Did you talk to Christy?”

“I did,” Link echoes. “I told her I wasn’t gonna do it, and I think she kinda laughed at me? I dunno, it was weird, man. Almost like she wasn’t even surprised by the idea if it.”

“Jessie too,” Rhett admits, picking his phone back up and drumming his fingers on the back of the case absently as he talks. “She just kissed me on the top of the head like I was a toddler or something then asked for the floor plan of our Skyn Wallz room.”

Only half paying attention, Link watches Rhett’s fingers move along the back of his phone, strong and tanned, juxtaposed by the sleek black band of his fitness tracker ring.

A distant part of his brain wonders what those hands might feel like if they _were_ on him, moving with purpose instead of just the casual shoulder squeezes or high-fives they share now, but Link dismisses the thought just as fast as it appears. He’s not having sex with Rhett – not now, not ever - so it’s not like any of that matters anyway.

“You, uh, you never really gave me a straight answer yesterday.” Rhett rubs his thumb along the side of his phone and Link stares, transfixed. “You said you told Christy no last night, so...no?”

“Yes. I mean, yeah, my answer is no,” Link fumbles to clarify. “How would – I can’t even wrap my head around – how’d we even _do_ it?” He laughs, probably a bit hysterically judging from the way Rhett’s still looking at him so intently. “Like, what even, man?”

“Well,” Rhett says slowly, taking Link’s hypothetical bumbling far more seriously than Link expected, “I figure we’d go slow. Really take our time gettin’ to know each other that way before we try anything too fancy. And then once we’re comfortable with it, I’d, uh...I’d maybe fuck you? It’s your call though, I could bottom if you wanted, I just thought that with the way you’re always talking about your asshole, and I know you like a little pain with your pleasure...”

“Oh gosh, please stop talking.” Face on fire, Link hangs his head and closes his eyes, hoping for the ground to open up and swallow him whole.

“You asked,” Rhett reminds him, and when Link re-opens his eyes to glare at him in betrayal, they both burst out laughing, nerves coming out in the form of contagious giggles.

They stay like that - laughing to the point of tears in their eyes - until Link’s cheeks hurt and his ribs ache and everything doesn’t seem quite so scary anymore.

“You’re completely insane,” he says afterwards, out of breath and way too fond.

“I probably am,” Rhett easily agrees.

“What if it’s terrible?”

“Then we stop - before, during, any time you want. Nothing’s gonna happen without full consent on both our parts.”

“What if it ruins our relationship?”

“Could anything at this point?” Rhett responds with a question of his own. “I drank your pee. I watched your vasectomy happen. Is this really all that different?”

Link can feel a wry, hesitant smile start to tug at his lips; a natural response to the sheer ridiculousness of what Rhett’s saying. “It’s a little different, man.”

“Maybe a little different,” Rhett acknowledges with a slight tip of his head, slouching further into the couch and letting his legs spread wide until the toe of his shoe finds Link’s on the floor, “but it’s also weird, and we’re good at weird.”

Link’s tiny smile expands out into a full-fledged grin as he lets out a brief laugh. “We are good at weird,” he agrees.

They both go quiet after that, but it’s not an uncomfortable sort of silence. Never is when it’s just the two of them.

“So...” Rhett’s the first to eventually break the spell, tapping his toe against Link’s again. A small, reassuring presence. A reminder that no matter what, they’re always in this thing together, be it work or life or any one of their wild, creative endeavours. “Are you in?”

And maybe it’s stupid, Link thinks, but it can’t be any stupider than throwing rocks off the roof of Campbell University, or making their own closet wine, or rolling his old pick-up truck over into a ditch, so it’s surprisingly easy for him to let go of all his trepidation now as he sinks into the familiar warmth of Rhett’s smile, feels the comforting weight of their shoes touching, and opens his mouth to let the words come out.

“I’m in.”

* * *

The plan comes together with an almost frightening amount of ease.

It takes a week for the bed Jessie ordered to arrive, then another week for their schedules to align in a way that lets them carve out a Saturday night to spend together at the creative house.

Link spends over an hour getting ready; meticulously scrubbing himself down in the shower, then agonizing over what to wear, then fussing with his hair until he catches his own eyes in the bathroom mirror and laughs at his reflection; at the jittery mix of nervousness and anticipation he sees there.

He drives himself to the creative house, declining both Christy’s offer to drop him off and Rhett’s to pick him up. He needs the few minutes of alone time to get his head together.

_Anxiety or excitement?_ his therapist would ask, but even after months of therapy at this point, Link can’t begin to decipher the shaky ball of emotions that’ve twisted themselves up in the pit of his stomach.

When he eventually pulls into the driveway to find Rhett’s car already there, his heart jumps so high into his throat, for a second Link worries he might throw up. 

Still gripping the steering wheel tight, he bends forward to rest his forehead against it, eyes closing as he takes a few deep, calming breaths.

This is fine.

Everything is fine.

Rhett said they could stop at any point, so technically Link doesn’t even have to walk in there if he doesn’t want to. He could back out right now and know that Rhett wouldn’t hold it against him.

But for some reason that doesn’t sit right with him. Feels wrong. He should at least go in there and see what Christy and Jessie have done with the room. See how Rhett’s feeling about this whole thing too. Maybe he’s equally as nervous right now. Maybe he’s needing Link’s reassurance just as much as Link needs his.

It’s that thought that propels him into unbuckling his seatbelt, grabbing his overnight bag from the backseat and walking up the driveway to let himself in through the front door.

“Rhett?” he calls out, feeling weirdly cautious as he locks the door behind him then pockets his phone and keys.

“In here,” Rhett’s reply comes from where else but the Skyn Wallz room, and Link swallows through another heart-jump as he winds his way past the living room and down the hall towards the middle bedroom.

When he gets there, the door is ajar - not fully closed but not all the way open either - so Link pokes his head in hesitantly, unsure of what to expect.

To his surprise, the room looks about the same as the last time he was in it, aside from the addition of new, nicer looking curtains covering the windows and a California king taking up most of one wall.

The bed is done up in fluffy white blankets, the only pop of colour being a collection of throw pillows arranged up near the headboard; half of them a rich, jewel-tone green reminiscent of the eye colour on Rhett’s wall, the rest a deep, dark charcoal like the hair colour on Link’s.

_Strong influence_. Maybe Rhett’s the one who’s more deserving of that title now, since he somehow managed to get Link on board with this whole idea.

Rhett himself is standing by the foot of the bed – pacing there from the looks of it. His hair is down, beard trimmed, and he’s wearing a nice pair of jeans and the soft, grey Big Bear Lake sweatshirt he wore during their very first vlog.

The reminder makes Link want to smile. He never would’ve thought that starting those vlogs would lead them to renting a house together, least of all preparing to have sex in that house now.

“Hey.” Rhett’s voice is quiet but his smile is warm when he sees Link loitering in the doorway. “How was the drive?”

“Fine.” Link’s grateful for the small talk as he pushes the door fully open and steps inside, dumping his bag on the floor. It’s not like he expected Rhett to immediately start gettin’ naked, but the normalcy of griping over LA driving does a lot to put his nerves at ease. “The usual traffic, but that construction on Magnolia’s still a real nightmare.”

“Ah, yeah,” Rhett nods along in agreement, “I got stuck there for like ten minutes last week tryin’ to make a left turn. It’s brutal.”

“So, the – um – the bed looks good.” Link rubs at the back of his neck, fighting the urge to blush. “Did you try it out yet?”

When Rhett’s answer comes in the form of a single raised eyebrow, Link realizes exactly how that must’ve sounded and starts to backtrack, blushing in full force now.

“ _Laying_ on it,” he blurts out. “I didn’t mean – I’m not talkin’ about, y’know, _sex_ ,” he practically whispers the last word, causing Rhett to laugh heartily.

“Relax, man. It’s all good,” Rhett assures him with a grin. “I made sure it’d be firm enough for my back, yeah.”

“Okay, good. Good,” Link repeats, raking a hand through his hair as he just kind of stands there, at a loss as to what to do next.

Thankfully Rhett must sense his unease because he carefully rounds the bed and takes a seat on the edge of the mattress, patting the empty space next to him. “Let’s just sit for a while, yeah? There’s no rush to do anything,” he reminds Link.

Link blows out a relieved breath, feeling some of the tension ebb out of him. “Right.”

He settles down next to Rhett - just as close as they always sit, with knees brushing and shoulders near - but something about it feels different now. Charged. Stirring something in his gut that he can’t put a name to.

Part of it is nervousness, he knows, and it’s ridiculous because this is _Rhett_ , one of the few people he trusts most in the world. His human safety blanket. The one person who’s been there supporting Link through all the major milestones of his life.

So it makes sense in a funny sort of way, Link figures, that if he was ever gonna do this with anyone, it should be Rhett marking this milestone with him too.

“I thought we could come up with some ground rules first,” Rhett says, leaning most of his weight onto his arms, palms balanced down on the edge of the mattress as he looks over at Link.

“Yeah, okay.” Link looks down at where Rhett’s left pinky finger is resting precariously close to Link’s leg. God, his hands are so big, one would probably cover most of Link’s thigh. The very real possibility of soon finding out if that’s true kinda makes Link’s head swim. “Lemme guess – you already thought of a bunch?”

Rhett’s lips quirk up into a rueful grin. “Guilty.”

Laughing a little, Link knocks his knee into Rhett’s and says, “Well, go on ‘n tell me.”

Playfully, Rhett pushes his knee harder into Link’s in response, flashing one last brief grin before he sobers up. “So, aside from stopping at any time like we already talked about, I think it’s important that if either of us doesn’t like what the other person’s doing, we speak up. This whole thing is about testing our chemistry, so we need to be honest with each other about what feels good and what doesn’t. That make sense?”

Link nods. “Yeah.”

“The other thing is that if anything about this starts to feel too weird, we have to talk it out. That includes afterwards, if we start gettin’ too stuck in our own heads and catastrophizing what this is gonna do to our friendship.” Rhett’s voice drops a bit in tone, gaining more seriousness. “It’s not gonna ruin our relationship unless we let it. And that’s not even an option, if you ask me.”

“Me too,” Link agrees quietly. They rely on each other for so much, both personally and professionally, he can’t even imagine a world where his friendship with Rhett feels in any way strained or stretched too thin.

Knees still pressed together, they stare at each other a few beats too long, and something about it feels important, like a silent pact, a blood oath 2.0, but then Rhett clears his throat and slaps his hands down onto his thighs, and the moment’s over.

“If there’s anything you wanna add, go ahead,” he tells Link. “That’s all I really wanted to say.”

Link shakes his head. “No, I – uh – I think you covered most of it.” His brain feels a bit too jumbled to contribute anything noteworthy at the moment, much less articulate.

“Okay. I guess that’s it then.” Rhett rubs his palms on his jeans. “So, here it goes.”

“Here it goes,” Link agrees, mouth gone dry and heartbeat picking up speed as his eyes flick back up and lock onto Rhett’s.

Oh god, this is it.

Rhett starts to lean into his space slowly - just enough for the full length of their arms to press together - and Link jumps, flinching back like a spooked horse.

“Sorry, sorry,” he apologizes automatically, embarrassed. “Can we...can we maybe just...kiss first?” 

His voice probably sounds just as pathetic as he feels because Rhett’s whole posture seems to change at that, face gone soft and shoulders curling forward like they always do when he’s trying to appear less tall, less threatening.

“Of course,” he answers, quiet. “C’mere, bo.”

Link shifts sideways on the bed till his knee bumps up against Rhett’s thigh, and Rhett grasps the top of Link’s shoulder in return. He squeezes there, brief and reassuring, and Link can’t help but smile, instantly more at ease.

“Who’da thought we’d end up here, huh?” Rhett murmurs with a slight smile, always so good at helping Link take a mental step back when he starts spiraling downwards.

Sure enough, the dumb observation is just enough to shake off the excess weight of his anxieties as Link laughs softly, eyes slipping down to rest on Rhett’s mouth. A mouth that he’s about to start kissing any second now. It’s beyond bizarre to think about, but also weirdly thrilling if Link’s honest. He hasn’t kissed anyone but his wife in the last twenty years, and now he’s about to break that streak with _Rhett_. Who’da thought, indeed.

“Y’know, I even brushed my teeth for this,” Rhett continues in a low, rumbly, joking sort of voice that brings goosebumps to Link’s skin, “and I don’t do that for just anyone.”

“Not any ‘a the other best friends you kiss?” Link replies, eyebrows raised and mouth tilting with the hint of a teasing grin.

“Nope,” Rhett confirms. “Just you.”

“So I’m special, huh?” Somehow his voice has dropped into an almost-whisper and Link swallows, gaze stuck on Rhett’s as they study each other unabashedly now.

“You fishin’ for compliments, Neal?”

It feels like outright flirting at this point, and Link’s stomach fills with butterflies when he realizes it. “Maybe,” he mumbles back, vaguely wondering how they ended up so close together when Rhett’s nose gently nudges up against his own.

“You know I’m not gonna make you do anything you don’t wanna do, right?” Rhett murmurs, breath warm across Link’s mouth.

“I know,” Link answers, and with a surge of confidence that surprises him, he threads his fingers into the thick of Rhett’s hair and pulls him forward into their first-ever kiss.

It’s mostly just a dry press of lips and their noses are kind of squished together, making Link laugh awkwardly against Rhett’s mouth. “This is so weird. Your mustache keeps, like, tryin’ to go up my nose.”

That immediately sets Rhett off and they end up snickering with their foreheads pressed together until Rhett eventually tilts his head, slots their mouths back together at a new angle and _oh_ , that’s...yeah. That makes more sense.

Rhett’s mouth is warm and his lips are deceptively soft as they move carefully against Link’s. All in all, it’s pretty chaste – no tongue, not a lot of pressure – but Link’s pulse still skyrockets as his breath hitches in his chest.

Pulling back, he looks into Rhett’s eyes. They look more grey than green in the low evening lighting, focused intently on Link with an intensity that feels both gravely serious and affectionately soft. They’re eyes Link’s seen almost every day of his entire life, but never quite like this. Never pooled with desire or softened with so much vulnerability. The novelty of it does something to his insides, like all his organs have melted into a hot, burning puddle low in his belly.

“Rhett,” he breathes, barely more than a whisper, not even sure what he’s trying to say, but it doesn’t matter anyway because one of them – maybe both – are moving forward on instinct, mouths meeting again with more urgency, more fluidity, as Link’s lips part and Rhett’s tongue slides inside.

He exhales shakily into the kiss, one hand sliding to the back of Rhett’s neck as Rhett reaches for him in return, one hand splayed across Link’s upper back and the other holding him by the hip.

Link breaks the kiss just enough to order, “Take my shirt off,” and the noise Rhett makes in response – low and surprised and a little bit growly - feels heady, like an extra shot of pride to Link’s wavering self-confidence.

They part just far enough for Rhett to get the hem of Link’s shirt pushed up between them, and the amount of care he takes in pulling the fabric up over Link’s head - mindful of his glasses and even fixing the fluffed-up front of Link’s hair afterwards - puts a weird lump in the back of Link’s throat.

It’s only fair that he takes care of Rhett’s in return, Link figures, so with fumbling fingers he takes a hold of the bottom of Rhett’s sweatshirt and starts working it up.

Rhett lets him, quiet and compliant when Link maneuvers his arms through the sleeves and pulls the whole thing up over his head, tossing it aside.

He’s seen Rhett shirtless plenty of times before, but something about the broad, tanned expanse of his chest, the way his hair falls just above his bare shoulders, thick and curly and honey-brown in the dim lighting, makes Link’s throat go dry. With the way his pulse is going, he’s surprised his heartbeat isn’t actually visible when he glances down at his own naked chest.

“Still good?” Rhett asks, eyebrow cocked like he’s waiting for Link to take the bait.

Link grins, seizing the opportunity since Rhett’s lined it right up for him. “We’re still good.”

He’s still grinning when Rhett cups the side of his jaw, brushes a thumb over Link’s smiling lips, then leans back in for another kiss.

It’s already gotten easier, more familiar, and Link moves with him instinctively now, unafraid to touch Rhett’s shoulders, biceps, chest as they explore each other with slow, careful fingertips.

Rhett’s hands are warm like they always are; the pads of his fingers slightly calloused from his guitar. It makes Link shiver when they drift across one shoulder blade, down the side of his arm, and imagining those fingers curling around his dick makes him feel lightheaded in a distinctly not-unpleasant kind of way.

“I think – _oh_ –” Rhett’s thumb passes over Link’s nipple and whatever he was about to say suddenly dissipates into the air like smoke. 

“Hmm?” Rhett prompts him with a hum, rubbing that thumb in a slow circle now, and Link struggles to remember where he was going with this.

“I think I’m, uh, ready. To keep goin’. If we wanna take our pants off?” It comes out more like a question than a statement, but Link’s only capable of focusing so much while Rhett’s still touching his chest like that.

“Okay.” Rhett looks down at his belt buckle. “You wanna do the honors?”

It’s a lot different than just taking off Rhett’s shirt, but Link finds himself nodding anyway.

“Stand up,” he directs, wetting his lips when Rhett does as he asks and slowly rises to his feet at the edge of the bed. He’s tall enough that standing puts the fly of his jeans nearly face-level with Link, and Link has to fight down a blush, internally debating whether it’d be better to stand or keep sitting himself.

In the end he opts for standing, brushing his too-warm palms on the legs of his own jeans before reaching for Rhett’s belt buckle, eyes fixed somewhere around Rhett’s solar plexus since that seems like the least embarrassing of his options.

As he works the buckle open with shaky fingers, the backs of his knuckles graze the soft skin of Rhett’s lower belly and Rhett pulls in a sharp, audible breath, causing Link to fumble even worse as heat rises to his cheeks.

“Sorry,” he mumbles, and through some small miracle the belt finally comes loose.

“S’okay,” Rhett murmurs back. “Just caught me off guard is all.”

The button comes next and there’s no way of avoiding contact now as Link gets it unfastened, feeling the heat of Rhett’s skin brush his fingers again, the fine hairs of Rhett’s happy trail rubbing soft and ticklish against the back of his hand.

Swallowing, he follows that up by tugging the zipper down, and then there’s an awkward moment where his hands just kind of hover uselessly around Rhett’s hips before he decides, “You pull them down.”

“Should we go at the same time?” Rhett asks, gesturing to Link’s still-buttoned jeans. “Might be less weird.”

“Yeah,” Link agrees, grateful that Rhett seems to be so in-tune with his hesitancy. Maybe it’s written clearly on Link’s face, maybe it’s just a by-product of them knowing each other for so long. “You unbutton me, then we’ll each pull our own down.”

If Rhett thinks he’s being bossy or ridiculous, he doesn’t say. Link supposes that given the circumstances, he’s entitled to a couple free neurotic tendency passes anyway.

With no belt, Link’s jeans are an easy task and Rhett gets them unbuttoned in no time at all; Link’s breath hitching only a little when their roles are reversed and it’s Rhett’s fingers brushing his stomach this time.

When he’s done, Rhett’s hands linger there a moment longer as he dips one index finger into the waistband of Link’s underwear, quickly pulling the elastic away from his hip before letting it snap back into place.

“ _Ow_ – what was that for?!” Link exclaims, trying and failing to look stern thanks to the way he’s started to smile like an idiot.

He tries to retaliate but Rhett blocks his first couple attempts, and it isn’t long before they’re both laughing and grappling and trying to swat each other’s hands away. 

“Okay, okay, truce,” Rhett huffs out after another few minutes, both of them out of breath and a little overheated after so much scuffling. 

“Yeah, you’d better quit now,” Link goads with a grin. “Gotta conserve that all that middle-aged energy if you’re still gonna fuck me after.”

Both of Rhett’s eyebrows shoot up, expression a mixture of shock and amusement. “Look who actually managed to say the f-word without blushing. And you say you’re not competitive - that sounds like fightin’ words to me, Neal.”

Huh. Link didn’t even realize that was the first time he’d been able to talk about them having sex without having a red-faced, stammering crisis over it.

“I’m still not competitive,” he insists, “and I think you’re stallin’, McLaughlin.” He grips the top of both his jeans and underwear at once, looking over at Rhett with raised eyebrows of his own now. “You ready to go?”

The smirk Rhett gives him lights a fire in Link’s stomach, fills him with a little more of that pride-filled confidence and makes his own grin widen in return.

“On three?” Rhett asks, hooking his fingers into the waistband of his own underwear.

Link nods. “Three.”

“Two.”

“One.”

They both shove their pants down at once, kicking stubborn, tight denim off their ankles until they’ve got a puddle of jeans and underwear beneath them.

Link takes a breath, mentally counts to three again, then looks up at a fully naked Rhett.

It’s not the first time they’ve seen each other without clothes on, but it’s always been in passing glimpses, never outright and intentional. Seeing Rhett now, he looks – well, Link’s not gonna say it out loud cause he’d never hear the end of it – but he looks like a Roman statue; an abundance of curly hair, strong nose, broad chest and thick arms and well-built thighs. When Link’s eyes fall to rest between his legs though, there’s nothing dainty or statue-like there. Even though he’s barely more than half-hard, he looks big - thicker than Link expected, skin a dark, flushed pink that looks warm and smooth to the touch.

It’s – he looks _good_.

“Huh,” is what ends up coming out of Link’s mouth, making Rhett laugh.

“I always knew you were packin’ but damn, Neal,” Rhett says sounding slightly impressed, and oh, right, Link’s naked too, isn’t he?

He looks down at himself, finding that oddly enough he’s half-hard as well. “See somethin’ you like?” he jokes, trying to downplay the hot blush that’s started to settle on his cheeks.

Rhett doesn’t immediately tease him back. Instead he just kind of _looks_ at Link before asking in a steady, even voice, “If I say yes, is that gonna freak you out?”

Link’s throat goes dry and he blinks at Rhett, mouth half-open but no words coming out.

Rhett’s mouth curves up into a faint smile. “Thought so.”

“I’m – it’s fine,” Link insists, flustered and irritated and maybe a little flattered all at once. “Just – c’mere.”

Rhett barely takes a step forward before Link’s on him, pushing their lips together and taking his frustration out on Rhett’s mouth. 

His fingers grip tight to Rhett’s upper arm as he bites at Rhett’s bottom lip, urging him backwards until his legs hit the side of the bed frame and Rhett sits down heavily, leaving Link to crawl up onto him in order to keep the kiss going.

Rhett grunts when Link starts to get a little too sloppy, too carried away, and he breaks the kiss to chuckle breathlessly, “Careful – feels like your vampire teeth‘re gonna puncture my lip or somethin’.”

Link pulls back, unconsciously running his tongue over his lower teeth and feeling the sharp points of his canines that’ve managed to do a fair amount of damage to his own mouth over the years. Whoops.

He makes an effort to soften his movements when he goes back in to kiss the rest of the laughter from Rhett’s lips, and from there they fall into an easy exchange. Link can’t tell how long they spend like that, but from the way his lips start to feel tender and his breaths are coming out short and panting, it must be a while. Also - he’s surprised to learn when he shifts positions and his dick accidentally drags along Rhett’s hip - he’s _really, really_ _hard_.

Their kisses may have gotten bolder, but their hands have stayed relatively tame, not daring to venture much farther than mid-back, but now Rhett skims his fingers all the way down to the base of Link’s spine, bringing goosebumps to his skin.

“Feelin okay?” he murmurs the question, face still close to Link’s.

Link nods, causing their noses to bump together. “Yeah, you?”

“All good,” Rhett confirms, voice and smile soft as he rests the weight of his hand on Link’s lower back. “D’you wanna keep going? I could try jerkin’ you off for a while till you feel ready to move on.”

Link’s brain temporarily short-circuits. “You...you’d do that?”

“Sure.” Rhett shrugs a shoulder as best he can while lying down, like it’s no big deal.

“Well, if the offer’s there I ain’t gonna turn it down.” Link grins, feeling weirdly giddy as he climbs off of Rhett and settles down on his back instead, watching as Rhett rolls over and stretches to reach the side table at the far edge of the bed.

He can’t help but stare a little - Rhett’s back is _so_ long, skin covered in a light smattering of freckles and tanned almost year-round now that they live in a warmer climate. When Link’s eyes drop even lower, getting his first real uninhibited view of Rhett’s firm ass, an odd wave of heat makes his stomach flutter. 

Before he can think too much more of it, Rhett’s back at his side, holding a small plastic bottle filled with clear liquid. It doesn’t take more than one guess for Link to know what it is.

“I get the five-star treatment, huh?” he jokes, pulse picking up speed in anticipation of feeling Rhett’s hand on him.

Rhett pauses, studying him for a moment. “Don’t tell me you only jerk off with spit at home,” he says, looking like he’s personally insulted by the very idea of it.

There’s no way Link’s gonna answer that question. “C’mon man, boundaries.”

“Boundaries?” Rhett lets out a weird little snort-laugh that should not look cute on a forty-three year old man, and yet Link finds himself grinning kinda fondly at him anyway. “I’m about to put my fingers in your butt soon. I think we passed ‘boundaries' the minute our pants came off. Probably before that, even.”

He’ll admit, they’ve never really been a shining example of healthy boundaries, but Link would at least like to _try_ to maintain the illusion here. “Maybe, but some things are just between a man and his hand,” he declares stubbornly.

Rhett shakes his head, still laughing a little. “You’re so weird, man.”

There’s an affectionate streak in his voice that warms Link from the inside out, makes it easy for him to swat Rhett on the arm and complain, “You gonna keep talkin’ or get to work?”

“Oh, I see how it is.” Rhett grins, popping the cap on the bottle once he’s gotten himself settled comfortably at Link’s side. “You only love me for my big, capable man-hands.”

Link rolls his eyes. “I’d love you a whole lot more if you’d actually do what you said you were gonna do,” he replies, tongue fumbling just a little over the L-word.

Thankfully Rhett doesn’t seem to notice, too busy fiddling with the lube as he pours some into his palm. “Alright,” he looks up at Link once the bottle’s been recapped and tossed aside, “you ready?”

Link pulls in a shaky breath. “Ready.”

His earlier erection has softened a fair bit by now, but it doesn’t take much for Link to start hardening again when Rhett’s warm, slippery hand wraps around him.

“ _Oh_ ,” he breathes out, shuddering under the touch and immediately grabbing a handful of the bedspread to ground himself, fingers clenching tight.

“You okay?” Rhett’s looking at him steadily, eyebrows pulled together in concerned concentration like he’s trying to figure out the mystery that is Link’s libido. 

Link wets his lips, nodding shakily. “Yeah, it’s – you can keep goin’. Feels good.”

Some of the concern on Rhett’s face eases at that. “Good,” he says, adjusting his grip until it’s deliciously tight and Link can barely hold back a groan. Then he starts to slide his hand up slow, from base to tip, and there’s no possible way Link can keep silent now.

“ _Rhett_ – oh gosh,” he manages to get out, eyes shut and body thrumming as Rhett keeps working his hand over Link’s cock, pace slow and steady in a way that’s somehow both amazing and torturous.

“That’s it,” Rhett murmurs in encouragement, voice low and gravelly as he starts to coax precome from the tip, making everything even slipperier and therefore about a million times both better and worse.

“Shit,” Link breathes, feeling way too close to coming already. He opens his eyes to warn Rhett, surprised to find that Rhett’s already looking right at him, eyes dark and focused on Link’s flushed face.

They hold eye contact for a few long moments where Link forgets to breathe, but then Rhett’s suddenly shifting down the mattress to settle in between Link’s legs, replacing his hand with his mouth, and Link’s soul momentarily leaves his body.

The moan he lets out would be embarrassing under any other circumstances, but Link’s too far gone to care when Rhett’s lips are sliding over him, pausing to suck gently at the head before swallowing the length of him down again.

It’s all so hot and so wet and so _good_ , he barely notices at first when Rhett’s hand moves lower, one wet fingertip putting gentle pressure on his hole. Not pushing or testing, just resting there.

Link finds himself pushing into the touch anyway, body instinctively searching out something his brain isn’t sure of; he just knows that he wants more.

They’ve always been good at speaking to each other through body language alone, so Rhett immediately seems to recognize what Link’s asking for, starting to circle his finger around the rim, rubbing slow and firm until Link’s pretty sure he’s gonna lose his mind from how good it all feels.

He starts shifting his hips in time with the movement of Rhett’s mouth and hand, trying to remember not to thrust up too much since he’s got no intention of making Rhett choke.

“That’s – wow, Rhett, it’s so good,” he starts babbling breathlessly. “Oh god, feels so—”

The next muted thrust of his hips catches Rhett right as he’s in the middle of shifting his hand for a better angle, and just like that the tip of Rhett’s index finger sinks right into him with no resistance.

Breath stuttering to a stop, Link instantly goes hot all over, feeling his cock give one heavy, warning throb where it’s still cocooned in the heat of Rhett’s mouth.

“Rhett, _Rhett_ ,” he warns, voice strained and heart pounding. “You gotta stop – I’m gonna come.”

Rhett’s finger slips free as he pulls off, lips wet and pink and still torturously close to Link’s cock as he looks up the length of Link’s body. “Do you wanna come now? Might help you relax enough to make the next part easier.”

“But –” Link snaps his mouth shut. _But I wanna come when you’re inside me_ , is what he’d been about to say.

Rhett must misinterpret his silence because he smiles, suddenly looking amused. “What, worried about your stamina?” he teases. “Can’t get it up twice in a row anymore, old man?”

“Shut up,” Link grumbles. “You’re older than me anyway, so any age jokes you make about me are really just insults to yourself.”

Rhett gives him one of those annoying Rhett looks, head tilted and eyebrows raised like he knows everything and is just humoring Link. “Do you wanna come or not, Neal?”

“You’re so freakin’ annoying sometimes,” Link grumbles, not sure if he wants to kiss or punch that smirk off of Rhett’s face. “Yeah I wanna come.”

Rhett’s smirk takes on a gleeful edge, lowering his mouth to hover just over the head of Link’s cock. “Say please.”

“Seriously? Rhett, c’mon,” Link urges, frustrated in more ways than one. He’d been _so_ close to coming, and now Rhett’s gonna make him ask for it politely? Screw that.

“Still haven’t heard a ‘please’,” Rhett says, leaning his cheek onto Link’s upper thigh as he waits.

The sheer force of the murder-glare Link levels at him says everything he needs to say without words, and after a few seconds of staring at each other in a silent face off, Rhett huffs out a defeated breath, propping himself back up on his elbows and muttering, “Stubborn,” before his mouth finds Link’s cock again.

Link automatically sighs at the feeling, all the built-up tension leaving his body immediately when Rhett drops his head to suck on him gently.

“Thank you,” he murmurs quietly, because he’s not a complete jerk, and a pretty important part of his anatomy is dangerously close to Rhett’s teeth right now, so it probably pays to stay on his good side.

Rhett rewards him in the form of picking up the pace, stopping only briefly to grab the lube again and add more to his hand so he can slide the pad of one wet finger back down to tease Link’s rim.

He’s still fairly relaxed from Rhett’s earlier actions, so it doesn’t take much for the tip of Rhett’s finger to slide into him again. Link groans at the feeling, hips shifting restlessly on the mattress when Rhett goes a little deeper now, sinking in up to the first knuckle.

It feels sort of strange but not bad – definitely not bad when Rhett uses his other hand to wrap around the base of Link’s erection, starting to work what he can’t fit into his mouth. It’s all so good, it feels like his brain’s being pulled in two directions: fighting to focus on the tight warmth of Rhett’s mouth over the head of his cock or the satisfying fullness of Rhett’s finger inside him. It’s a stimulation overload and all Link can do is try to hang on and remember to breathe.

From there it isn’t long until that warning rush of heat returns; a low, throbbing warmth spreading from his groin to chest to limbs until Link’s swimming in it, overwhelmed but still chasing more.

“Oh gosh, I’m gonna-” He can barely get the words out, tongue clumsy and most of his energy too focused on moving his hips in just the right way to keep those sparks of heat going.

Rhett hums around him encouragingly, pulling almost all the way off to press his tongue against the slit, and that’s all it takes for Link to start to come with a shuddering groan, head pressed back into the pillows and mouth falling open.

Rhett doesn’t pull back immediately, letting Link come in his mouth for the first few pulses before he leans away and lets his hand do the rest of the work, drawing the rest of Link’s orgasm out in warm, white stripes that land across Link’s belly.

It feels amazing and Link tries to catch his breath in a daze, grinning up at nothing and probably looking a little loopy judging from the way he can hear Rhett start to chuckle.

“That was -” he tries to articulate through the warm, fuzzy afterglow. “God, Rhett. You were – and I –” Link doesn’t even know how to put all the feelings swelling in his chest into words, overcome with a sudden mixture of gratitude and affection, like he wants to pull Rhett into a bear hug and then buy him a fruit basket as a token of his sincere appreciation. Because Rhett just did that. For _him_.

“Feel good?” Rhett asks as if the answer to that isn’t glaringly obvious, and Link struggles to regain some of the coordination in his limbs so he can sit up and yank at Rhett’s arm, intending to get that hug one way or another.

“Stupid question,” Link mutters in response, feeling the pleasant vibration of Rhett’s laughter when he pretty much falls forward into Rhett’s chest, forgetting about the mess on his stomach as he leans into him and hooks one arm around Rhett’s back, pulling their bodies together tight.

Rhett slides both arms around Link’s waist in return, holding loose at first until Link orders, “Tighter,” and Rhett laughs some more, finally getting the memo and wrapping Link up in the big, warm, all-encompassing hug he’d been hoping for. 

“You didn’t have to use your mouth,” Link mumbles into the side of Rhett’s neck, braver now that his face is hidden and he’s got the loose, happy contentment of one orgasm under his belt, “but that felt real nice. Thanks, Rhett.”

Rhett rests his cheek on the top of Link’s head and makes an amused noise. “Wouldn’t even say please for me a few minutes ago, and now look atcha.”

“The power of sex,” Link comments distractedly, sticking his nose further into Rhett’s neck to breathe in the comforting scent of soap and sweat and something that’s just plain Rhett; familiar in a way that puts him immediately at ease.

“The power of _Rhett_ ,” Rhett counters. “Quick-Mouth Skilled-Hands McLaughlin. That’ll be what they call me when they write books about this moment.”

Link snorts. Of course Rhett’s ego would be loving this. “Who’s ‘they’?”

“You know, the abstract ‘they’.” Rhett shrugs. “Historians and stuff. Sex-torians. Maybe Dr. Phil or somethin’ if he ever does a series on how to boink your best friend while maintaining healthy communication skills.”

“You can’t see it but I’m rolling my eyes so hard right now,” Link deadpans, still speaking mostly into Rhett’s neck. “And besides, I think you’re gettin’ ahead of yourself, man. You still haven’t boinked me properly yet.”

“Well then,” Rhett lowers his mouth to Link’s ear, voice warm and amused and rumbling when he says, “let’s fix that, hmm?”


	2. Chapter 2

“That drawer is like a freakin’ Mary Poppins bag,” Link comments, watching with lazy interest as Rhett digs around in the bedside table for a second time. From this angle, the low lamplight casts shadows across the expanse of his back and Link traces the lines with his eyes, wondering if by the end of the night his own marks’ll be visible there. “What all did the girls put in there?”

Rhett smirks, this time returning with a bottle of water and a package of baby wipes, the latter of which he tosses at Link, hitting him square in the chest. “That’s for me to know and you to find out.”

Link makes a face at him, tearing into the package and starting to clean off his stomach while Rhett cracks open the seal on the water. “I could just go over there ‘n look, you know. It’s not like it’s a secret.”

“You could,” Rhett agrees, pausing to take a long drink from the bottle before he looks over at Link, gaze steady. “Or you could trust me to take care of you.”

Warmth tingles down Link’s spine and he swallows through the sudden dryness in his throat. He could play the whole thing off with a snarky response, but something about the way Rhett’s looking at him prompts Link into going the honest route instead.

“Haven’t I already been doin’ that since we were kids?” he says, eyebrows lifted like it’s obvious.

It’s the right kind of response apparently, because the grin Rhett breaks out into is wide enough to make his eyes crinkle at the corners, leaving Link helpless to do anything other than grin back at him.

“Damn right,” Rhett says, smug in a way that Link can’t even bring himself to feel annoyed about because honestly, he’s kinda pleased about the whole thing too. “Let’s keep the streak going, yeah?”

The question is accompanied by Rhett handing him the rest of his half-finished water, and Link accepts the bottle as that warm, shivery feeling returns, slipping down his spine to curl up comfortably in his stomach like a cat in front of a fireplace. 

“Yeah,” he murmurs in agreement before twisting the cap off and finishing the rest of the drink. A couple mouthfuls is all it takes to empty it and Link lets out an obnoxious “ _Ahh_ ” of satisfaction afterwards that makes Rhett smile, lean in to pluck the bottle from his hand, then lean in more.

Kissing comes almost as natural as breathing now, just another added dynamic to their relationship, and Link’s fingers catch in the curls at the back of Rhett’s neck as he pulls Rhett closer, letting himself recline back when Rhett crawls over top of him, taking up his earlier position between Link’s legs.

“You ready to keep goin’?” Rhett’s palm slides from where it’d been holding the side of Link’s jaw, down his throat, his chest, coming to rest warm and heavy on Link’s stomach.

Link hums, half in agreement, half just enjoying the touch. It’s still a bit too soon for his dick to rally for a second round, but a spark of anticipation is already stirring back to life in his stomach so it won’t be long, he figures. Especially not if Rhett’s gonna keep touching him like that, looking at him like that, talking to him like that with a voice that’s a little extra gravelly around the edges. 

“This part’s probably gonna be intense, so I want you to talk to me about all of it, okay?” Rhett is looking at him with such earnestness, such sincerity, Link can’t even think to stop it when his hand automatically moves to brush Rhett’s cheek, settling affectionately over the scruff of his beard for a few long seconds before Link comes to his senses and lets his fingers drop.

“One running butt commentary, comin’ up,” he confirms, making Rhett laugh as he reaches for the abandoned bottle of lube, eventually excavating it from the blankets and popping open the top.

He won’t admit it to Rhett, but breaking the ice with an earlier orgasm was definitely a good idea, helping to ease the way now as Link breathes through the slow, increasingly familiar pressure of one finger; body and mind both way more relaxed now. He can’t even feel himself blushing this time around – at least not yet, anyway.

“Tell me when you want another,” Rhett says, voice quieter than normal as his eyes flick between Link’s face and lower, to where he’s got one finger pressed all the way inside him, working it in and out in a gentle thrust.

“S’good,” Link mumbles, half distracted as he watches the way Rhett’s bicep flexes as his arm moves, the strong but subtle shift of tendons beneath the tanned skin of his forearm. “You can keep goin’.”

There’s a pause as Rhett goes for the lube again - overly cautious in a way Link appreciates – and then a second finger is teasing his rim, rubbing slow and coaxing the muscle to relax until it slides in with only a hint of resistance.

Right away, it’s clear that two is a whole different ballgame than one.

“ _Oh_ -” Link breathes out with a slight laugh, feeling his nose scrunch up as he wriggles his hips, trying to get used to the feeling. “Yeah, that’s weird.”

“Bad weird?” Rhett’s paused there, both fingers held shallow and unmoving as he waits for some kind of further instructions.

“Weird weird,” Link clarifies. “Doesn’t hurt or nothin’. Just give me a minute.”

“Take your time,” Rhett says, starting to rub Link’s hip with his free hand. “D’you want me to...?” He skates his fingertips across Link’s pelvis, coming to rest millimeters from the base of his cock.

Heat rolls through Link like a wave and he wets his lips, answering with a nod since his voice seems to’ve run away from him.

It feels just as good as the first time when Rhett takes him in hand, rubbing his thumb along the underside and making Link’s breath hitch until it’s coming out in the form of little cut-off moans.

“Move your fingers again,” he instructs when the last of that weird feeling fades out and leaves behind an odd sense of frustration instead, like he needs Rhett to be moving inside of him, not just resting there idle.

Rhett does as he’s asked, pushing his fingers all the way back in before crooking them slightly, searching for just the right spot, and it’s kind of funny, a distant part of Link’s brain thinks, how Rhett’s so keen to follow orders here without complaint when under any other circumstances they’d be squabbling over everything as simple as the thermostat setting or where to order lunch.

Theoretically, Link’s always known that Rhett’s a big softie hidden beneath an intimidatingly large exterior, but he’s never really experienced it firsthand before. Not like this.

Everything about Rhett has gone gentle: hands, eyes, even his voice when he twists his fingers inside Link and murmurs, “One more, I think. Can you take another?”

Link’s eyes flutter shut at the sensation, a soft groan working its way out of his throat as his hips try to chase the new kind of pressure that comes with that twisting motion. He’ll take just about anything Rhett wants to give him right now. “Do it.”

Rhett wasn’t exactly wrong when he’d assumed Link likes a little pain with his pleasure, and it’s more than apparent now when the low ache and burn of a third finger makes Link shudder, heat zinging down his spine to gather warm and alive in his belly.

“Oh gosh,” he breathes out, almost laughing a little with how unexpectedly good it all feels. “Turn your fingers again – yeah. Yeah, that’s – oh god.”

“Link.” There’s a slight crack in Rhett’s voice, one that makes Link struggle to reopen his eyes, pushing past the haze of pleasure to focus on Rhett, and when he does, Rhett looks strung out and desperate, eyes dark and cheeks flushed as he stares down at Link.

“You haven’t come yet,” Link murmurs, only now realizing it as the words leave his mouth with an awe-struck sort of tone. “You’ve done all ‘a this for me, but you’ve still been hanging on, waitin’.”

“It’s fine,” Rhett tells him in what feels like a laughable contrast to every visual signal Link’s receiving. “I told you to take as much time as you need, and I meant it. I’m not gonna rush you. Might just need to take a break soon so I can get myself off before we keep goin’-”

“Rhett,” Link says softly, affection swelling in his chest as he cuts Rhett off. “Shut up and put your dick in me.”

Mouth half-open, Rhett stares at him. “You’re sure?”

Link stretches his arms out like he’s waiting for a hug, feeling a smile lift the corner of his lips. “Get down here, dumbnut.”

Rhett’s answering laugh is rich and deep, tasting just as good as it sounds when he lowers himself down onto his elbows, blanketing Link’s body and seeking out his mouth.

The kiss is slow and deep, leaving Link a little breathless by the end of it when Rhett eventually pulls away to search out the lube again. When he finds it, he drizzles some directly onto his cock, slicking it up before he hesitates there, perched on his knees in between Link’s thighs.

“You’re sure you’re ready?”

Link gives him an exasperated look, half teasing and half fond. “I’m sure, Rhett. You aren’t gonna break me, and even if something hurts, you know better than anyone that I’ve got no problem complainin’ about it. Loudly.”

That makes Rhett smile and he takes a deep, reassuring breath, shuffling closer on his knees. “Okay. I’m gonna go slow, and-”

“I’ll tell you if I wanna slow down or stop or whatever,” Link finishes for him. “C’mon man, I ain’t gettin’ any younger here.”

“Younger, no. More mouthy, maybe,” Rhett says, a half-smile just visible at the edge of his mouth.

“So shut me up,” Link challenges with a grin of his own.

Rhett does.

When he rubs the head of his cock against Link’s hole, the pressure immediately steals away Link’s next breath; already feeling so much larger and more intense than Rhett’s fingers when he starts to carefully press inside.

“God,” Rhett groans low, head tipped down and face half-hidden by his hair as he stares down at where their bodies are slowly meeting, “you feel so – are you sure you’re alright? You’re so tight.”

“Yeah,” Link manages to get out, eyes squeezing shut for a second as he rides out the heightened sensations; a stretch and burn that’s been dialed up to eleven. “It’s a lot, but keep movin’. Feels like it’s gonna be worse if you stop.”

When Rhett eases his hips forward a bit more, there’s a second where everything gets sharply intense, and Link has a brief flash of worry that it might all be too much, that he’ll have to tell Rhett to stop, to call the whole thing off, but just as quickly as it’d started, the intensity suddenly gives way and the head of Rhett’s cock sinks all the way in, both of them letting out quiet, relieved groans at the feeling.

“S’okay, I’m okay,” Link promises as soon as he gets his breath back. He feels kinda hot and tingly all over - like when your arm falls asleep then all the blood finally rushes back into it – but it’s not really a bad feeling. More strange and exhilarating than anything else.

When he looks up, Rhett’s whole body is held taught above him, eyes dark and brows pulled together, and Link kind of wants to smooth away the two little worry lines that’ve formed there, so he does.

His coordination isn’t all that great at the moment, so he just kind of ends up poking Rhett in the forehead at first until Link finds the right angle and manages to drag the pad of his thumb along the curve of one eyebrow in a more fluid, intentional move; wordlessly reminding Rhett to relax. He’s always had this weird kind of appreciation for Rhett’s eyebrows - dark and strong and suiting him perfectly – so it’s oddly gratifying for Link to have unfettered access to them now. To be able to touch and stare as much as he wants.

Some of the rigidness starts to leave Rhett’s shoulders as his eyes crinkle up at the corners, giving away the smile he’s trying to hide, and he’s just so – he looks so –

“You have a nice face,” Link blurts out, making Rhett laugh outright; the sound warm and rich and only adding to the tingling sensation currently filling Link’s bloodstream.

“So do you,” Rhett tells him, no longer fighting his smile when he leans down to kiss Link.

Link gives himself over to it immediately, letting the kiss grow long and lingering ‘til they’re both just kind of breathing against each other’s mouths as Rhett starts to pull his hips back and roll them forward in slight, controlled movements that push him a little deeper each time.

After about the third time, the initial burn has simmered down to more of a low ache, almost pleasant actually, and Link pulls away from Rhett’s mouth just far enough to ask, “Are you all the way in yet?”

Rhett shakes his head, propping himself back up on his arms as he looks down between their bodies. “Little more,” he murmurs, head down and hips angled forward, watching his cock sink in another slow inch. “God, you should see yourself like this, Link.”

Ignoring the blush that feels like it’s traveling all the way from forehead to chest, Link makes a faint noise in the back of his throat, aiming for humor but coming out strangely breathless instead when he says, “Am I pretty?”

Rhett’s eyes immediately rise back up to meet his. “You’re hot as hell,” he says, voice rough, and Link’s heart does a weird little skip-flop-twist that leaves him feeling like it’s lodged somewhere up behind his Adam’s apple.

“Kiss me again,” he orders through the sudden tightness in his throat, welcoming Rhett’s mouth when it finds his.

He slides his arms over Rhett’s shoulders, trying to soak up as much of Rhett’s heat as he can, and Rhett groans into the kiss when Link’s hands start to travel lower, grazing over his ass a few times with light, exploratory touches until Link palms him fully, abruptly pulling Rhett forward so he has no choice but to sink the rest of his cock into Link in one slick, sudden thrust.

The onslaught of sensations hits Link like a truck; heady and all-consuming in a way that’s totally foreign to him. He’s hot and trembling and _full_ \- so strangely, satisfyingly full in a way that’s dizzying - and all he knows is that he wants more. Needs it. Might be addicted to the feeling already.

“Oh god - _Link_ ,” Rhett chokes out, equally overwhelmed from the sounds of it, and Link nudges their noses together, seeking out Rhett’s mouth for another series of kisses that’re shorter and quicker now, pressed to Rhett’s lips in between each word Link says.

“Move,” he urges, half-desperate with it when he feels Rhett’s cock twitch inside of him. “Move, move, move.”

Rhett starts rolling his hips in a slow drag, still breathing out a collection of curse words under every breath, and Link could almost laugh with how intoxicating it all feels. He doesn’t think he’s ever felt so powerful and vulnerable all at once. Stripped bare in more ways than one, and yet it feels like Rhett’s the one who’s answering to him right now.

But it’s not just him, Link knows. Rhett’s got just as much of his own hold over Link at the moment. It’s a push-and-pull, an exchange they’re both giving themselves over to equally, and somehow...somehow they’re making it work.

Rhett’s next thrust is faster, harder, building up to a steadier speed, and Link happily lets his brain turn off for a while as he sinks into the pleasure instead.

“Feels good,” he murmurs, but that doesn’t quite seem like enough, like he’s not giving Rhett the credit he deserves, so Link pushes past the small wave of embarrassment that often comes with paying Rhett a genuine compliment and amends, “you feel good, Rhett.”

He can’t tell if the slight flush on Rhett’s face is a result of exertion or what Link’s just said, but from the way Rhett swoops back down to kiss him, Link’s pretty sure it’s the second one.

Why did it take them so long to add kissing to their relationship anyway? It’s like all the most familiar physical parts of Rhett that Link likes best have been concentrated down to their purest form: the way he smells, the heat of his skin, the comfort of having him close. And it’s good. It’s really good, but -

“I want to -” Link breaks the kiss to swallow, trying to articulate what he wants through a sudden rush of shyness, “– can I, like, get in your lap?”

“Fuck,” Rhett breathes, hips stilling as he stares down at Link. “Yeah. Yeah, of course. Here, lemme-”

He pulls out and Link groans at the loss, feeling strangely open and empty, but it isn’t long until Rhett’s reaching for him again, seated up against the headboard now and pulling Link forward into his lap with warm, steady hands on Link’s hips.

When Link straddles him and takes Rhett’s cock in his hand, he can hear – can _feel_ – Rhett’s breath hitch at the touch.

_Power and vulnerability_ , Link thinks as he wraps one hand around Rhett’s cock, holding it steady before he centers himself over the tip and sinks down slow.

They both groan at the feeling; Rhett loud, Link breathless and shaky.

“Are you – is that okay?” Rhett checks in, voice sounding strained despite neither of them really moving yet.

Link nods, not even sure if he’s capable of forming a coherent sentence right now. “It’s...yeah. Rhett, oh my god.”

Rhett chuckles a little at that and Link shivers pleasantly when he feels the vibration of it resonate through his own chest.

There’s so much more intimacy like this - contact at every point - and Link feels like he’s cocooned by Rhett’s arms around him, his chest pressed up against Link’s own. Warm and protected, but also more exposed at the same time because there’s nowhere to hide now; face level with Rhett’s and only inches apart.

Keeping his arms looped around Rhett’s neck for balance, Link rises up on his knees experimentally, lifting almost all the way off Rhett’s cock before letting his own weight do the work for him when he lowers back down, moaning a little at the thick, hot slide.

“Oh god,” Rhett groans, head tipped back against the headboard as he looks at Link through half-lidded eyes. “You keep doin’ that and things really aren’t gonna last long.”

“What, this?” Link grins as he lifts up again, working to tilt his hips just right on the way back down.

It earns him another throaty sound and Rhett’s eyes narrow, sending a little thrill down Link’s spine. “You’re just askin’ for trouble,” he says lowly, “aren’t you, Neal?”

Another rise and fall, and this time Link tries grinding down once Rhett’s all the way inside him. It feels incredible, so it’s hard to keep his voice steady when he answers innocently, “I ain’t doin’ nothin’.”

Rhett huffs out a rough sound that might be a laugh, and suddenly his hands are sliding around to grip Link’s ass, using nothing but arm strength to hoist Link up and then guide him back down again, setting the pace _for_ Link, and Link makes an embarrassingly high, whiny noise in the back of his throat, because...wow.

_Wow_.

His whole body turns on like a power grid, bright and hot and electric as he tightens his arms around Rhett’s neck and starts trying to time the shift of his hips with Rhett’s own, matching the quicker, harder pace.

“Shit,” Link mumbles a bit dazedly, mouth open and panting against the side of Rhett’s beard as they move together in sync now. “Holy – _Rhett_ \- don’t stop.”

“Not gonna,” Rhett promises, hoarse and out of breath as he digs his fingers harder into the meat of Link’s ass, making Link groan.

He doesn’t know when it’d happened, but somehow his cock is fully hard again and rubbing up against Rhett’s stomach with every thrust, only adding to the onslaught of sensations as Link fists his hand in the back of Rhett’s hair, holding onto Rhett’s shoulder with his other. He can feel that he’s wet, dripping, leaving a mess behind on Rhett’s skin with every move, and it’s possibly the dirtiest, most satisfying thing he’s ever experienced.

Trying not to tug too sharply, he uses the hand in Rhett’s hair to pull his head back, forcing Rhett to look up at him from an angle, and pleasure throbs hot and quick through Link when Rhett’s eyes find his like that; dark and hazy and submissive. 

Link’s fully anticipating it when Rhett murmurs out, “Don’t pull too hard,” and he answers with a half-fond eye roll, easing up on his grip of Rhett’s hair but not letting go completely.

“You’re a baby,” he says, more affection than insult.

“You’re a hazard to yourself and everyone around you,” Rhett shoots back, mouth slipping up into a smile. “Kinda like a puppy. A cute little pup - gettin’ so excited it turns you clumsy and you don’t even realize it.”

“Shut up,” Link responds automatically, more out of obligation than anything else because the rest of him is too busy processing what that nickname does to him.

“Little pup,” Rhett repeats, still teasing, but there’s something deeper woven into his voice this time, something that feels more tender and honest. Something that resonates through Link’s chest and dick and the flushed skin of his cheeks, dialing his blush up another few degrees.

Seeing Rhett look at him like that - the familiar crinkle of his eyes and warm tone of his voice - it’s like it triggers some kind of video reel in the back of Link’s mind; an onslaught of old memories cycling through his brain as he sees the two of them laughing together, huddled in sleeping bags in Rhett’s backyard. Swimming at the river, the sun warm on his shoulders as Rhett splashes water at him with a grin that’s just as sunny as the sky overhead. Riding bikes and sitting on their rocks and driving around with the windows rolled down, voices harmonizing effortlessly to the sound of Merle playing through the speakers. An endless number of adventures, exploits and milestones, all reached together. And he’s lucky, Link thinks. He’s so lucky to have this.

A tight, hot lump forms in the back of his throat and he clings to Rhett tighter. Squeezes his eyes shut then realizes that no, he wants to keep them open. Wants to see all of this. All of Rhett.

“Hey,” Rhett murmurs low and gentle once Link reopens his eyes. “You okay? You’re cryin’, Neal.”

Is he? Huh.

Not trusting his voice, Link just nods, tucking his face into Rhett’s neck and breathing through the sudden rush of fullness his chest, the series of sparks that light up his spine as he moves his hips again.

Rhett’s hands automatically fly up to stop him, catching Link by the hips and holding him still. “Woah, wait a sec - you’ve gotta tell me if you want to stop,” Rhett reminds him, clearly misinterpreting his tears. “Does something hurt?”

Link rolls his forehead along the top of Rhett’s shoulder in a lazy attempt to shake his head. “Opposite,” he manages to get out. “It’s just a lot. Here,” he gestures down to where their bodies are joined, “but also here.” He starts to bring his fingers up to his sternum then thinks better of it and grabs one of Rhett’s hands instead, guiding it up and pressing his palm flat to the centre of Link’s chest, where the skin is hot and his heart’s beating rapidly.

The expression on Rhett’s face that follows is maybe the rawest Link’s ever seen him look; gutted and soft and overwhelmed all at once.

“ _Link_ ,” he says, but no other words follow, apparently too hard for Rhett to voice so he uses his mouth to convey it in a different way, kissing Link deep and long and thorough enough to make Link’s chest ache all over again.

Talking takes a backseat after that and Link pours everything he’s got into translating the swell of emotions in his chest into the kiss, hoping Rhett’ll understand.

Thankfully Rhett seems to get it, making a rumbly sound deep in his chest as he tugs Link closer, one arm wrapped around the small of his back and the other sliding up to the base of his neck, resting there warm and reassuring as he kisses all the breath out of Link.

“You’re amazing,” Rhett mumbles in between kisses, foreheads and noses still pressed together. “You’re so – you know how much you mean to me, right?”

Link nods, which mostly just results in him kinda head-butting Rhett since their faces are still so close together. He does know. As much as they might tease and needle and annoy each other, it’s always coming from a place of love. A place of such comfort and familiarity, they can ignore all etiquette and treat each other like brothers. Like _more_.

Still though, confessions like this don’t come from Rhett often, so Link’s gonna take full advantage while he can.

“Show me,” he demands, and Rhett groans as he catches Link’s mouth with his again.

Fingertips squeeze Link’s hips just once – a silent confirmation that he can start moving again – so Link does, starting off with long, drawn-out movements as he rises up and rolls his hips a little on the way back down. It’s still a novelty, the way Rhett feels inside of him - how hard and smooth and hot he is – and Link wants to learn it all. How to make Rhett’s eyes go dark and glassy, what his face looks like when he comes. They already know everything else about each other, but not here. Not when it comes to sex.

That’s obviously something they’ve gotta fix.

He picks up the pace as Rhett’s lips move downwards, head tilting so he can get at the side of Link’s neck with his mouth, and Link’s head falls back automatically, groaning at the feeling. He’s gonna have a hickey, a distant part of his brain thinks, oddly delighted by the idea of it. Rhett’s giving him a hickey.

Rhett’s mouth pauses over Link’s pulse point, stays there gentle like he’s memorizing the rapid beat through his lips, and that’s almost enough to have Link’s throat tightening up with emotion all over again.

“Rhett,” he murmurs out, not even knowing what he wants to say, but that seems to be enough, spurring Rhett into action as he tightens his hold on Link and resumes pushing his own hips up to meet his.

It takes a few tries to get their timing exactly right, but then the tempo clicks into place and on Rhett’s next thrust, pleasure jolts through Link like a flash of lightning, white-hot and visceral. And that, he thinks dazedly, must be his prostate.

“There,” he gasps, whole body shuddering, “right there. Do that again.”

“Fuck,” Rhett groans, breathing hard as he fucks up into Link again, “You gonna come from this?”

It definitely feels like he could and Link gives a jerky, uncoordinated nod before letting his head hang there, staring down between their bodies so he can watch with a dirty kind of fascination as his cock leaks all over itself and Rhett’s stomach; flushed red and so hard, he’s kinda impressed by his own stamina.

The urge to touch himself is strong, even just to wrap a loose fist around the base or drag a thumb along the shiny wetness spilling from the slit, but he doesn’t dare do that now. He wants to draw this out longer, make it stretch as long as he can. Call it selfish, but he’s not ready to give up this newly-created intimacy with Rhett just yet.

“How do we look?” Rhett’s voice startles him a little, obviously catching Link staring since there’s audible amusement in his tone.

There are at least six different ways Link could respond to that but he already knows exactly what he wants to say; the words ready and waiting on the tip of his tongue as he pulls in a hitching breath then looks back up, locking gazes with Rhett before he answers, “Perfect.”

Rhett’s face does that raw, overwhelmed thing again where he looks at Link so intently it almost hurts, and Link is quickly discovering that that look is his kryptonite, making his heart lurch as he surges in and kisses Rhett again, trying to soothe it away. He doesn’t like seeing any sort of devastation on Rhett’s face, even if it might be a good kind.

“You’re not allowed to say that kinda stuff,” Rhett mumbles against Link’s mouth, half-joking but probably more honest than he’s letting on. “Can’t have both of us cryin’ during sex.”

Link huffs out a slight laugh, a fresh round of affection swelling in his chest as he tightens his arms around Rhett’s neck, bodies still rocking together. “Is that a rule?”

Rhett rolls his hips up and grins, eyes all dark and sparkling and unfairly attractive. “Should be. I’ve got a reputation to uphold.”

“Ev- _oh_ \- everyone already knows you cry at The Bachelor,” Link points out, voice faltering when Rhett hits just the right spot to make him burn hot all over. “Your reputation self-imploded years ago.”

“Self-imploded?” Rhett repeats as his grin starts to shift, taking on more of a smirking edge. “If you’re still using words that big, must mean I’m not doin’ my job well enough.”

“Wha-” The question isn’t even all the way out of Link’s mouth when Rhett fucks up into him again - hard enough to make an obscene, audible smacking sound – and Link’s voice immediately dries up like the middle of the desert.

Oh crap.

Mouth dropping open, he can’t even pull in enough air to moan, just has to hold onto Rhett and try to breathe through the avalanche of sensations cause Rhett’s hitting that spot every time now, pressing on his prostate, and Link’s either going to come or pass out very, very soon.

Forcing his limbs back into motion, he presses into his knees for balance then bears down as Rhett’s hips jerk up, and just like that, something snaps and all sense of rhythm or composure goes out the window until they’re just kind of grinding against each other desperately, Rhett buried deep.

It gets frantic fast, rough and unpolished as Link starts to feel that telltale tightening low in his belly, a rising sort of heat that’s moments away from swallowing him whole. And god, he’s never – it’s never felt like this before. Like he might die if he doesn’t come, but also like he might die if he _does_.

“Touch me,” he pants, words coming out unevenly. “I’m close.”

Rhett groans in response, working one hand in between their bodies and taking hold of Link with a firm, tight grip that feels amazing even before he’s really started to do anything. When he starts to actually move though, sliding his fist up and down the length of Link’s cock, that’s beyond words.

“Fuck,” Link breathes, every inch of him on fire, “oh fuck, fuck-”

The next time Rhett’s hand catches on the head of Link’s cock, it’s simultaneous with the deep grind of his hips against Link’s ass, and Link practically writhes, stimulated in too many directions to keep track of. 

“Come,” Rhett orders - begs, maybe - and his voice has gone so rough and ragged, Link swears he can almost feel it like a physical touch. “Link, you gotta come, I can’t – I’m gonna-”

That’s all it takes as Link gasps, head falling back as he comes with Rhett’s name stuck in his throat, pumping through his bloodstream, imprinted in every too-quick beat of his heart.

It’s like time moves differently in those few seconds, noise fading out and vision going hazy around the edges as the real world floats away and Link just kind of exists; pleasantly delirious and satisfied in a way he’s never quite felt before. 

He comes back to himself just in time to hear Rhett let out a broken-sounding moan, face tucked into the curve of Link’s neck as he spills into Link, and Link can _feel_ it, the way Rhett’s cock is jumping inside of him with each rhythmic pulse of release. It’s so wildly hot, he’s pretty sure he could come all over again if he weren’t already wrung dry, so instead he just rakes his fingers through Rhett’s hair, murmurs nonsense to him as Rhett shudders through the last of the aftershocks, breathing hot and damp against Link’s neck.

Link knocks his sweaty temple into Rhett’s and lets it rest there, the two of them leaning against each other in a messy, exhausted heap.

“I gotta move,” Link murmurs eventually once Rhett’s gone soft inside of him and both their heartbeats have started to slow. His thighs started giving him grief ages ago, and staying straddled over Rhett now is only adding to the ache.

Rhett hums in agreement, helping to steady Link as he lifts off of Rhett’s lap and lets himself flop into the empty space beside him, flat on his back and sighing in relief when he’s able to stretch his legs out fully.

Lying there wrung-out and naked with sweat drying on his skin, Link feels - as dumb or dramatic as it might sound - like he’s been fundamentally changed as a person. Like his molecules have been rearranged. Like from here on out, he can only see the world through the lenses of I’ve-Had-Sex-With-Rhett glasses.

Everything is just a little bit brighter. A little bit easier. And he could almost laugh because of course, _of course_ they fuck together like they sing together. Like they write songs or scripts or books together. Fluid. Effortless. In sync. Like it’s always meant to’ve been that way.

“So.” Rhett’s voice breaks through the growing stretch of silence. “That was...informative.”

He sounds like he’s just had some kind of life-altering epiphany and Link can’t help it when he laughs in response, loud and bright and feeling just as dumbfounded as Rhett seems.

“Y’know,” he says to the ceiling, letting the back of his hand fall against Rhett’s where it’s laying on the mattress in between them, “I think maybe we’ve been stupid for a really long time.”

Rhett’s the one who lets out a laugh now, and when his pinky finger slides over to hook around Link’s own, something loose and restless that’s been rattling around inside Link’s chest for weeks – months – possibly _years_ – finally slots into place, sinking in with a warm and peaceful kind of sureness.

“Yeah,” Rhett agrees, rolling his head to the side so he can look over at Link with a slight smile. “I think you’re right.”

**Author's Note:**

> Second chapter to come at some point. It's shaping up to be just as long as this one, so I've got my work cut out for me :)


End file.
